Kimora Lee Simmons had to sweeten the deal.
The model revealed that she had to make some extra promises in order to get her daughters Ming, 25, and Aoki, 23—who she shares with ex Russell Simmons—to appear in Kimora: Back in the Fab Lane.
"I had to bribe them," Kimora told E! News correspondent Will Marfuggi in an exclusive interview, quipping, "I don't think it's appropriate to bribe. I don't think it's normal."
As for what she had to bribe her eldest with? The 50-year-old—who is also mom to sons Kenzo, 16, with ex Djimon Hounsou, Gary, 15, with ex Tim Leissner, and Wolfe, 10, who she welcomed through adoption in 2020—admitted that her agreements included material goods like a "sports car" and a "wardrobe of fancy stuff that you have to wear to work."
"They took advantage," she quipped, "so it actually cost me more to do this production. My girls got paid more than everybody else. Everybody else worked for free. Well, me, I worked for free in order to pay."
And while they may have needed some convincing, Kimora insisted that her girls, who previously joined their mom on her late-aughts reality show Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane, are "excited" about the E! series now. After all, they both still spend a lot of time in their childhood home.
"They really haven't moved out and moved on," Kimora shared. "They do. They travel, they go around. They have their own places as well. But somehow they never really quite left the whole mess."
And the Baby Phat founder is equally as thrilled to step into this new chapter with her family. In fact, she believes having her five children—and their friends—appear on Kimora: Back in the Fab Lane adds some fresh perspective to the reality series, which originally ran for four seasons from 2007 to 2011.
"I'm now a mom of five, but I have a lot of other kids all around," Kimora explained. "I've changed jobs, careers a few times, husbands, investments. I acquired a bunch of stuff, gotten rid of a bunch of stuff. People are older. I am a boy mom. I was a girl mom. People have driver's licenses. People are having car wrecks."
She added, "It's life."
Kimora: Back in the Fab Lane airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. on E!. While you wait for new episodes, read on for a deeper look at Kimora's famous family...
Kimora Lee Simmons
In Kimora's house, she's the mom, the dad, the president and the CFO.
"It's like The Brady Bunch," the mogul joked of her blended family of seven in the Back in the Fab Lane trailer, "but with no husband."
Ming Lee
Ming—the eldest of five siblings—was born on Jan. 21, 2000 to parents Kimora and hip hop music legend Russell Simmons.
Ming attended NYU and is currently following in her mom's footsteps by pursuing a career in modeling.
Aoki Lee
Kimora and Russell welcomed daughter Aoki on Aug. 16, 2002.
In addition to modeling, Aoki has proved herself to be quite the intellectual. She was accepted to Harvard at just 16 and graduated from the prestigious university in 2023.
Kenzo
Kimora and ex Djimon Hounsou are parents to Kenzo, born May 30, 2009.
Now a teenager and towering over his parents at nearly 6-feet, 8-inches tall, Kenzo is a star player on his high school basketball team.
Gary
With so much love to give, Kimora introduced son Gary to the family by adoption in 2020 when he was 10 years old.
Now in high school, Gary has found a passion for football.
Wolfe
Wolfe, nicknamed "Wolfie," was born April 10, 2015 to Kimora and ex Tim Leissner.
Jayden
While not Kimora's biological son, Kimora acts as mama to "bonus son" Jayden.